The Last Two Weeks in Fitness and Health

Saturday, Sept. 29th
The Color Run 5K
I am not sure how to count this, primarily because I drank a PBR before I even started. I did manage to carry out a combination of walking and running over the five kilometers, and for the next several days, I was sufficiently sore. I still loathe long-distance running, and it doesn’t look like that will change. Now, a short run (vs. a jog) is fine, and spliced with a fast walk, well, I guess it still works.

Still not my favorite.

Tuesday, Oct. 2nd
Yoga at homeThis day, I used a 22-minute video on Hulu. The instructor was crazy quick through all her poses, so I was a bit sloppy with my practice. It still felt good, and I still got in some strength exercises aimed towards my core and quads.

Thursday, Oct. 4th
CrossFit – Work-Out of the Day (W.O.D.): UndoneBench Press – 3 [reps]-2-2
Started with just the bar during the warm-up; during the working portion, I managed to get up to 65lbs. for the 2-rep part, which is a big accomplishment for me because: 1. I have not benched for years; 2. 65lbs. was my maximum weight for that exercise last time I checked (years ago).

Then there was this:12-9-6* reps for time of:
​- Dumbell Thrusters
​- Dead-Hang Pull-ups (Chest to Bar)
​- Kettleball Swings
Not like any of this was super-pretty during my work-out… For the thrusters, I had 15lbs. in each hand, utilized a band that was probably way too resistant during pull-ups, and used the 12oz. kettleball.

Final time was 6 minutes, 46 seconds. I could have done better in terms of form.

5 sets of 5 reps– Strict Press (a.k.a., “Good luck getting the bar above your head without using your legs!”)
The strict press is like having a flier (cheerleading reference, warning) who won’t pull her weight, plus you can’t use your legs because your knees are locked. My first round was super-sloppy with a 45lb. bar, so I focused on form with a 35lb. bar for the remainder.​5×3 – Push Press (a.k.a., “Oh thank God, my knees work again!”)
Push press, much better. This time, it was more like the motion I’m used to, with a dip in the knees followed by exploding upwards with the weight. 45lb. bar the entire time, and it felt good.​5×1 – Push Jerk
45lbs. Look up the lift.​5×1 Split Jerk
45lbs. again. Yippee, at least I was using the “normal” bar.

We had a 25-minute cut-off on the above. I finished within the limit, which is good considering I was working on form and technique, not weight.

Next came the following portion.
21-18-15 reps for time (with a maximum time limit of 10 minutes) of:
– Kettleball Swings
– Knees to Elbows (hanging from the pull-up bar)
– Double-Unders with a jumprope, or in my case… Single-Unders with the reps multiplied by 3
I finished in 8 minutes, 44 seconds with the 12oz. kettleball, really cruddy knees-to-elbows (my grip was exhausted after the first round), and punishment for being so uncoordinated in elementary school when we learned how to jumprope.

And then guess what…

Tuesday, Oct. 9th
Cross-Fit– WOD: Triple DoubleToday was the day that I got off work an hour early, so I went to the gym an hour earlier than normal. I also managed to stumble into one of the more elite groups and I was the only woman. So, imagine me working out with my mini-loads and modifications alongside a bunch of really strong male regulars. Everyone has to start somewhere!

I ended up with 5 rounds/7 rounds/6 rounds respectively for each pairing. The modifications were abundant in my life, and I’m going to elect to not disclose what the prescribed weights were. What I will tell you is this: I used a 45lb. bar for back squats and confirmed that my shoulders don’t like rotating internally. This is not news, but having it described as trouble with the rotation is new. And good. (Thank you to my coach who gets it.) For the remainder, I used the 35lb. bar. The 22lb. bar was brought out in case my shoulders bothered me during the last pairing, but I stuck with 35lb. even though my overhead squats seem to have a more restricted range of motion.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering: no, I did not do actual ring dips nor handstand push-ups. I’m not there yet. Again, modifications to build up strength and get down the technique are more important than sloppy work.

All in all, the past two weeks have been full of getting back into some sort of routine. I’ve officially joined the CrossFit gym, and while it is pretty darn pricey, I am making the commitment to get stronger and work through mental and physical roadblocks. This also means going out a lot less and not impulse spending on stupid things. It also (sadly) means being much more intentional in when I book my travels. I know my health and wellness, as well as travel and exploration, are important, so striking a balance will mean forcing myself to adhere to a budget.

That’s a wrap for Wednesday. Hopefully next time, I won’t report that I’m stuck under a barbell or something.